Growing or increasing inches is essential for every person, especially children, and adolescents. Some people can be affected by their shortness or stunted growth, especially when it comes to body shaming from age mates. Stunted growth can lead to increased stress or depression, especially for children after experiencing bullying from older people and wishing they were taller just like them.
Much scientific research shows that limited sleep can result in stunted growth, especially in children. Despite the research showing insufficient sleep can reduce growth rate, some ideas and views oppose the topic and show that inadequate sleep can unlikely affect the growth rate.
Can Low Sleep Stunt Growth?
Insufficient sleep can result in stunted growth in children, but it is unlikely for poor sleep to cause stunted growth in adults. As a child transits from one stage to another over the years, the growth rate increases to the maximum level. Once the top growth level is reached, the person no longer increases in height or increases just a little compared to children.
Low sleep triggers the hormones responsible for growth rate, resulting in diabetes and increased weight gain resulting in obesity, affecting the child’s height rate. In other circumstances, limited sleep can result in a rapid height increase in a child, making the child weak and too tiny.
Rapid height increase in children can severely affect the child’s body, especially when the child is weak. The effects include; decreased participation in class and field, loss of appetite, increased level of tiredness, and mood swings for other students.
Therefore, it is hard to prove if insufficient sleep affects height unless proven scientifically. As long as you eat a balanced diet at the recommended time, participate in physical activities, inadequate sleep may not affect a person’s height. Henceforth, insufficient sleep may or may not affect the person’s growth rate depending on the person’s hormones.
Moreover, it is essential to get adequate sleep or find possible and practical methods to allow you and your child to get enough sleep at night. Also, better and normal sleep can make you taller because sleeping allows your muscles and hormones to relax, increasing your body height.
Causes of inadequate sleep for both children and adults
Limited sleep is caused by several factors such as:
- Sleep apnea disorder that limits oxygen and CO2 exchange in the body. Restriction of continuous intake of oxygen and removing carbon IV Oxide from the body results in breathing issues increasing discomfort and irritation while sleeping. Such a condition, in most cases, results in loss of sleep.
- Climate changes. When the climate is too hot, some people find it difficult to sleep for long hours and vice versa. Therefore, it is advisable to try balancing the room temperature using a thermostat to improve the cosines of the room for better and longer sleep.
- Noise distractions. Loud music from police sirens, factories, among others, usually disturb one and restricts standard sleeping rate. If you live in an environment that produces loud music, consider looking for the best methods that will allow you to sleep peacefully, such as using earbuds and earphones carefully.
- Uncomfortable mattress and bed. Poor quality bed and mattress increase the level of discomfort and irritation, resulting in loss of sleep.
- Nightmares and night terrors also result in loss of sleep. Night terrors and nightmares are terrifying dreams one experiences while sleeping.
- Lifestyle of an individual. Lifestyles such as using electronic devices during sleeping time, eating habits, consuming alcohol and drugs can limit sleeping rate. Overeating food causes stomach discomforts, therefore, restricts sleeping rate.
- Lack of physical exercise.
- Absence of darkness whereby some people find it difficult to sleep with the lights on.
- Too much consumption of caffeine during sleeping time.
- Too much sleep during the day.
Other effects are associated with limited sleep apart from stunted growth
People undergoing low sleep may find it;
- Difficult to concentrate at work and in class.
- Excessive increase in weight resulting in obesity.
- Increase the rate of forgetting things, even important things.
- Feeling tired every time.
- Fading of someone’s beauty.
- Decreased participation, especially in adults during sex.
- Underweight or malnutrition of the newborn, etc.
Ways of preventing insufficient sleep
Sometimes, inadequate sleep is considered to be willing or unwilling. Willingness includes coffee intake during sleeping hours, overeating before sleeping, and using electronics late at night, while unwillingness has; sleeping disorders such as sleep apnea and insomnia. There are several ways of dealing with sleep deprivation depending on the cause of insufficient sleep.
a) Come up with the best daily sleeping schedule
A daily sleeping schedule enables one to keep the sleeping time constant, especially for patients experiencing sleeping disorders. When developing a regular sleeping schedule, the following materials are needed; a notebook or a chart, a pen, ruler, and clock to monitor time.
First, identify the best sleeping or recommended time and draw the timetable. In the timeline, show the sleeping and the waking up time to enable you to sleep early and wake up at recommended time. Some people prefer sleeping on the floor, like the Japanese using Tatami mat, Kake futon, and Shiki futon to wake up early. Finally, ensure you constantly follow the sleeping schedule to prevent the occurrence of sleep disorders and the development of low-quality sleep.
b) Daily physical exercise
Daily physical activities such as walking some miles each day prevent insufficient sleep, commonly known as sleep deviation or insomnia. Physical exercises like swimming make you tired, enabling you to have enough peaceful sleep, sleep faster, and rest of body muscles and the brain.
c) Access a comfortable mattress and bed
A high-quality mattress is the best way of dealing with inadequate sleep that results from a lousy mattress and bed. It is usually challenging to sleep on a smelling, old, rigid, or soft mattress; thus, it is advisable to buy a comfortable mattress no matter the financial instability. Further, a comfortable mattress and bed prevent pains such as neck pains, back pains, shoulder pains, etc.
d) Create a peaceful sleeping environment
If distractions from the environment cause insufficient sleep, try creating the best sleeping environment. For children, ensure the room temperature suits them, and place sensors in the room to detect temperature changes. The temperature changes can be adjusted using a thermostat. Also, play or sing soft music, read storybooks for the child to sleep peacefully.
For adults, creating a peaceful sleeping environment involves using headphones or earphones to block noise distractions, controlling room temperature, switching off the lights, etc. Despite making a friendly environment, consider visiting a professional doctor if the problem persists.
e) Avoid consuming caffeine during sleeping hours
Caffeine consumption, in most cases, results in low or lack of sleep. Caffeine is not only found in coffee, but some addictions resulting in insufficient sleep are also found in tea, energy drinks such as power play, among others. Ensure you avoid consuming caffeine before sleeping.
f) Develop a better lifestyle
A better lifestyle includes; avoiding the use of electronics when it is sleeping time, eating light food before sleeping, regular sleeping schedule, avoiding coffee consumption, and avoiding alcohol intake.
You might be interested to read also : Why Japanese People Sleep On the Floor?
Conclusion
Insufficient sleep can affect one’s growth rate depending on one’s hormones. Some people’s hormones can be triggered, resulting in excessive height, excessive weight gain, and stunted growth, while in others, inadequate sleep does not affect their growth rate.
If your hormones affect growth rate resulting in stunted growth, ensure you develop the best sleeping mechanism to increase your height. Finally, everyone should create the best sleeping habits, whether affected or not affected by inadequate sleep.
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